1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a gaming machine such as a slot machine, a ball-shooting game machine and the like, which particularly comprises a variable display device for displaying a plurality of display patterns in plays. The display patterns include symbols and combinations of symbols.
2. Prior Art
Referring to a slot machine, for example, a display mechanism which includes a plurality of (usually three) rotating reels disposed in line on front display windows of the slot machine is employed as a variable display device for variably displaying a plurality of display patterns, and a play with such variable displays is executed when a predetermined play condition is satisfied. In this case, the satisfaction of the predetermined play condition is that a player pulls a start lever or pushes a start button. The plurality of rotating reels are started to run by the player's operation and they begin the variable displays by movement of symbols (rows of symbols) as a plural kinds of characters, figures and the like which are indicated on a peripheral surface of each of the rotating reels. Then, a play is over by stopping the variable displays (movement of the rows of symbols) at the timing when the start lever returns (or the timing of pushing a reel stop button if it is provided), or after a predetermined time period has passed.
A control unit accommodated in the slot machine determines whether a play results in winning or not by comparing a value by sampling of a random number with an award table stored in a memory every time one play starts. When the determination results in "winning", the control unit controls the variable displays to stop such that a combination of symbols constructing the display pattern of the "winning" stands on a winning line of the display windows at the time when the variable displays stop, and it gives a predetermined play value (a predetermined number of coins or medals) to the player. On the other hand, when the determination results in "losing", the control unit controls the variable displays to stop such that the combination of symbols constructing the display pattern of the "losing" stands on the line at the time when the variable displays stop.
In such a slot machine, a particular combination of symbols (for example, "7-7-7") called "big winning" which brings the player a big gain (the play value) is predetermined besides usual winning.
Further, some pachinko game machines as a typical ball-shooting game machine employ a rotating reel mechanism that is employed in the slot machine as the variable display device, or electrical display means as LED's (light emitting diode), a LCD (liquid crystal display device), a CRT (cathode ray tube) or the like. In such kind of ball-shooting game machine, a condition of starting a play with the variable displays is that a game ball (pachinko ball) enters into a particular winning hole called "start hole". The variable display device is driven to begin the variable displays (movement of the rows of symbols) according to the satisfaction of the play condition (entering into the start hole), and a winning determination is executed by the random number sampling, then, the variable displays are caused to stop at a predetermined display pattern being based on the result of the determination. Of course, the particular play value is given to the player in the case of winning. Further, the "big winning" may be generated besides the usual winning.
In the gaming machine having such a variable display device as mentioned above, when the player plays the game to make a plurality of symbol combinations completed by the variable displays (this is called "symbol combination game"), he expects the display pattern to be "winning", particularly the "big winning" at the time when the variable displays stop. However, referred to the conventional gaming machines, there is a problem that the player tends to lose an interest in the game, because he can not either recognize or expect when the big winning will occur.
Particularly, referred to a slot machine which has no reel stop button, the player can not operate to aim at the display pattern of the "big winning" by the timing of pushing the stop button, thus the game seems to be simple and the above-mentioned problem becomes greater.
Further, there has been the similar problem referred to a ball-shooting game machine having such a variable display device as above.